Firing A Supplier - Demanding Excellence

 We have been in this industry for almost 25 years now. Sometimes that seems like a lifetime. In all those 25 years we have never officially fired a supplier, until today. 

We have many suppliers that have been with us for all 25 years. Over the years some have come and some have gone for many reasons. But I never actually fired a supplier.  

One of the things that our clients tell us is our attention to detail and our service levels are what set us apart from other trade show exhibit companies. We joke with people when they ask, why should I buy from you over some other company?  Our answer is always, "You get David and me". That may sound arrogant, but it is the truth. No one will care about our clients, our relationships and our suppliers the way we do. That is the HUGE benefit of working with a family run, owner operated business. 

Now, don't get me wrong. We couldn't do it without our industry partners. We have partners that have our backs, stand behind their products and help us double and triple and cross check orders so that things don't fall through the cracks. This has been even more important as our industry is coming out of shutdowns.  Our industry went from zero mph to 1000000 mph almost overnight. When that happens and companies are short staffed, or have new employees, more mistakes are bound to happen. Our suppliers have redone things, we have redone things. 

I will NEVER apologize for expecting our suppliers to provide good quality product and services. BUT, it is a partnership. Mutual success is critical to success for both parties.  When you have a supplier where there are mistakes and issues on your last 5 orders, it is time to part ways. I could deal with the mistakes but it is the emails and phone calls after every one of these mistakes where it is pointed out saying it is all 'our fault' that pushed us to fire them.

I sent them an email to explain why their process creates mistakes and errors and contributes to frustration and that it just doesn't work for us. I sent it, not to be petty, but to explain why their procedures just don't work for the way we do business. I got a phone call shortly after I sent that message from our rep. His literal words to me were, "We are ok parting ways." I wasn't looking for any explanation. It was already done, we were not considering continuing to work with them. We have also already found another supplier of the products we were getting from them and so far we are incredibly impressed.

So today was an adventure. Let's talk just a bit about service.  All in a day's work.

1. We fired a supplier. 
2. We received an incorrect graphic from a supplier. They immediately said they would have the correct one ready for us tomorrow. No charge.
3. We missed a typo in a client submitted art file. Was it our fault? Not really, they did the art. But the important thing is the client, the relationship and providing them good service. We didn't tell the client it was their fault.  We didn't charge her full retail for the replacement. Our print partner? They missed it too and are cutting the cost on it to make it right for us and the client.
4. The ultimate event of the day is that we were bidding on a very large deal. Normally this company brings their entire exhibit, furniture, graphics and staff over from overseas. We were asked to bid on building, installing etc. here from the States instead. We did not win the business, but neither did any of our US competitors, they decided to bring it in again from overseas. 

This is one of the nicest sales reject letters I have ever gotten. Although it stings to lose the revenue, it makes me realize that what we are doing and the hoops we jump through are all worth it.

"I want to thank you for your professionalism and attention to detail. It was immediately apparent we found the right US contact based on your knowledge and experience. You raised important questions and concerns that solidified our confidence in you. While the bulk of our booth will come from overseas, we believe there will still be some things we need locally. My boss and I are still fine tuning the details but we will be in contact shortly with our updated needs.

 Again, thank you for your hard work. I hope we can continue to work together with a strong relationship."

We stand behind our decision of firing a supplier and will NEVER apologize for being demanding. That does not mean being rude, but demanding excellence is what our clients deserve.

Does Your Trade Show Exhibit Represent Your Brand?

Last week I had the opportunity to walk a trade show. There were a number of things I noticed, and I had the opportunity to talk with a number of clients and prospects while at the show.

It is painfully clear to me that many people do not really care what kind of image their trade show exhibit presents. In a future post, I will share the stories of two exhibitors, right across the aisle from each other and their different experiences. I hope that maybe you glean some insight into how important your actual trade show exhibit/display is at a trade show.

Details matter people. The way your exhibit/booth looks represents your company, your brand, your staff and your product. Your brand is so much more than your logo and your color palette.

Here is a random list of what we saw. 

1. A large light box set up upside down. The one side upright had a HUGE hole and the cords ran down the side of the exhibit. If it were an inline, it might not have mattered but this was an island, right on the aisle for the world to see.
2. Dinged up, dirty, bent aluminum frames.
3. Dirty graphics.
4. More wrinkled graphics and table throws than I could even count. Come on people, it matters!
5. Retractable banner stands. Yup, still a ton of them. Mismatched banner stands. 10 x 30's done with retractable banner stands. I know they are easy, I know they are convenient, but not a great look for a company that is supposed to be an innovator.
6. Tube stands with pillow case graphics. These have become the new retractable banner stand. They are inexpensive, they are easy and EVERYONE HAS THEM NOW! One of the major points of a trade show is to stand out from your competitors and neighbors. When an item becomes that popular, they become invisible unless you are very strategic in how you do them.
7.  Internally/rear lit tube stands. This is just one girl's opinion, they don't work. The shadows from the tubes really are not a good look.

8.     This was actually my favorite. A vinyl banner hanging from the pipe & drape with a pop-up frame on the aisle (they were on an endcap) that had boards put on the cross pieces and had product displayed on the boards.  

 

9. Lightboxes. Oh my, lots of light boxes.  We love light boxes and sell or rent a lot of them. We saw very few good quality light boxes. Here are some of the things we saw.

·       Hot spots - light distribution was not even and you see bright spots of lights behind the graphics

·       Shadows of lighting transformers, frames and more

·       Actually seeing the light blanket behind the graphic.  Hundreds of circles of light visible through the graphic. I didn't even see their graphics; all I saw were all the white circles

·       Graphics installed incorrectly

The other thing to notice is booth staff behavior. We have talked about this before, but so so so so many people sitting in their chairs, heads down, on their phone, not even watching the people walk right by their booth.

 When you see a well done exhibit or a stunning booth, you know it and it feels like a breath of fresh air rather than a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach. 

 I wish I could share photos, but I just didn't feel it was right to do that for those companies' sakes.

 Watch for next weeks post about a tale of two exhibitors right across the aisle from each other.

I'll say it again, details matter people. The way your exhibit/booth looks represents your company, your brand, your staff and your product. Your brand is so much more than your logo and your color palette.

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Lori Hanken has been in sales and marketing for over 30 years. She is passionate about service and providing value to her vendors, prospects and clients. Lori is currently co-owner of Total Displays with her husband David. They help people look great at events, trade shows, in retail, museums and develop long partnerships with customers and suppliers. If you would like to learn more, email her at lori@totaldisplays.com. She is an open networker, connect with her on LinkedIn here.

Read other Total Displays Blog posts at http://totaldisplays.blogspot.com/ or check out our website at www.totaldisplays.com